Negative mailings offend Democrats, Republicans alike

• Crevier%3A Claim that Dan Robinson voted himself a raise in De Pere "just a flat out lie"
• Republican hopeful John Macco also says he dislikes the negatives ads%2C says he was targeted in past
• Mailings came from Jobs First Coalition%2C a group based near Milwaukee

Democrats and Republicans are speaking out against campaign mailers and other materials attacking a state Assembly candidate from Brown County.

Mailings from a Milwaukee-area group called the Jobs First Coalition falsely claim Democratic candidate Dan Robinson voted to increase his salary as a member of De Pere City Council and helped hike the city's sewer-use fees. Another mailer claims he "turned his back on children" because of his 2013 vote to repeal a De Pere ordinance that limited where registered sex offenders could live.

Robinson insists such claims are false and misleading. Now some local Republicans have joined the chorus.

De Pere Councilman Scott Crevier, a Republican, posted a lengthy entry on his personal blog Wednesday under the heading, "Negative ads against Dan Robinson are outright lies."

"Did he 'give himself a raise' as the ad states? Absolutely not," wrote Crevier, who says he respects Robinson although their political views often differ. "It's just a flat out lie; there's no other way to put it."

Brown County Republican Chairman Mark Becker also doesn't like such ads, which he said can give people a negative opinion of a candidate before he serves a day in office.

"Whatever happened to a good old fashioned clean campaign?" Becker said.

Robinson, a St. Norbert College administrator and a member of the county Board of Supervisors, is running against Republican candidate John Macco for the 88th District Assembly seat being vacated by Republican John Klenke of Green Bay.

"My hope is that people will see this for what it is: A group that is unaccountable is spending a whole lot of money to try to swing an election," Robinson said. "People who know me personally do not believe what they read or hear in these ads. However, a lot of people in the district don't know me personally and they might just take these falsehoods at face value, especially when they hear or read these over and over again."

Macco, a businessman from Ledgeview, said he doesn't like such ads either. He said they detract from candidates who should be trying to win on their merits.

Brookfield-based Jobs First, says it was founded in 2009 as a not-for-profit advocacy group devoted to making the creation and retention of family-supporting jobs the top priority of government and community leaders in Wisconsin. The group's website says it "uses internet-based technologies, the media, and the mail to effectively communicate its message and organize supporters of its public policy objectives."

The group did not respond to a request for comment submitted through its website; it did not have a listed telephone number.

Its ad paints a picture of the lawmaker "failing to protect our kids" because of his vote in 2013 to repeal an ordinance that prohibited registered sex-offenders from living within 500 feet of schools, parks and other places where children gather. A majority of the De Pere City Council voted for repeal, which has been recommended by officials from city police and the state Department of Corrections.

But, according to Crevier, Robinson and others, police and Department of Corrections officials had told board members in meetings before the vote that residency ordinances often make the community less safe.

The Jobs First group also blames Robinson for a 63 percent jump in De Pere sewage fees. Records show Robinson voted against the resolution that led to the hike, but a mailer says, "Why does Dan Robinson think it should cost so much to flush your toilet?"

— dschneid@greenbaypressgazette.com and follow him on Twitter @PGDougSchneider

On the Net

Crevier blog entry: http://www.crevier.us/

Dan Robinson site: http://www.robinsonforassembly.com/

John Macco website: http://johnmacco.com/

Sex offender mailer: http://bit.ly/1DA0yh0